The United States government has proposed ending its contributions to both the African Development Bank (AfDB) and its concessional arm, the African Development Fund (ADF).
The proposal, if actualised, will put Africa’s development financing in limbo, at a time when AfDB is preparing for a record fundraising cycle.
As seen in President Donald Trump’s proposed 2026 budget released in early May, his proposal includes a $555 million cut to U.S. support for the AfDB and ADF, as part of a broader $49 billion reduction in international aid as outlined in
The budget prioritizes increased spending on defense and homeland security, while branding multilateral programs focused on climate, gender, and democratic governance as “ideological.”
Structural Reforms
This comes at a critical juncture for the ADF, which is targeting $25 billion in its upcoming fundraising round for the 2026–2028 period, nearly three times the amount raised during ADF-16. During that last cycle, the United States alone contributed $568 million, making it one of the Fund’s largest donors.
AfDB President Akinwumi Adesina has for years championed a structural overhaul to enable the ADF to access global capital markets. The plan now gaining traction would leverage the AfDB’s AAA credit rating to allow the ADF to issue bonds, potentially unlocking an additional $27 billion in funding.
The model mirrors reforms undertaken by the World Bank’s International Development Association (IDA), which began issuing bonds in 2017. That move expanded IDA’s lending capacity significantly, allowing it to raise $33.5 billion from markets on top of $23.5 billion in donor pledges during the IDA20 round.
Also Read: AfDB Approves $31 Million to Boost Climate Resilience in Africa
Donor Trends and Local Support
While such a shift requires strong political backing from donor nations, the ADF has already taken preliminary steps. It recently began offering partial credit guarantees to help African governments lower borrowing costs.
Countries like Côte d’Ivoire, Benin, Rwanda, and Togo have already leveraged these tools in partnership with financial institutions such as Standard Chartered and JPMorgan.
At the AfDB’s 2024 Annual Meetings held in Nairobi, African leaders reaffirmed their commitment to the institution. Kenya’s President William Ruto pledged $20 million and called on Africans to “believe first in their own institutions.”
Additional pledges followed from Benin ($2 million), Sudan ($3 million), and commitments from the Gambia, Ghana, Liberia, and Sierra Leone.
Among non-African donors, support has remained resilient. Japan, Germany, France, the UK, China, and Sweden have all renewed or increased their contributions despite shifting U.S. policy.
Under ADF-16, the Fund disbursed $3.2 billion, backing projects worth nearly $8 billion. In 2023 alone, ADF interventions delivered clean water to 1 million people, extended electricity access to more than 500,000, and improved transportation for 2.5 million.
Agricultural inputs were supplied to over 11 million farmers, and nearly 700,000 jobs were expected to be created, almost half for women.
The Fund has also doubled down on climate resilience, a key focus area increasingly at odds with Washington’s redirected foreign policy. Nonetheless, with growing African support and interest from global financial markets, the ADF appears poised to chart a new course potentially less reliant on traditional donor dynamics.
As the AfDB sets its sights on a $25 billion goal, all eyes will be on whether political and financial capital can align to sustain Africa’s development momentum amid shifting global priorities.
